Exclusive | LAs $87M taxpayer money mystery deepens as nonprofit backed by mayoral hopeful Nithya Raman faces spending scrutiny

An LA nonprofit bankrolled with millions in taxpayer funds through mayoral candidate Nithya Raman’s eviction-defense program more than tripled its revenue in five years, even as reported housing and eviction-defense spending plunged, a California Post investigation found.The Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) saw its annual revenue soar from $17.6 million in 2019 to $58.6 million in 2024, while its net assets doubled to nearly $44 million, according to its IRS returns.But City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto’s office found that LAFLA’s reported housing and eviction-defense spending plunged from $17.6 million in 2022 to $4.4 million in 2024.Feldstein Soto is now demanding a full audit, warning that $55 million to $87 million in city and county funding cannot be reconciled with the nonprofit’s public financial records.LAFLA fiercely disputes the findings, insisting every dollar is accounted for.The figures provide a closer look at the nonprofit’s finances a day after The Post reported on the City Attorney’s Oct.9 findings, which raised questions about years of taxpayer-funded contracts.“Taxpayers deserve transparency and accountability and to know that their money is being used as intended, in this case to protect vulnerable tenants at risk of unlawful detainers in the City of Los Angeles,” Feldstein Soto told The Post Thursday.LAFLA helps operate Stay Housed LA, a city and county program providing free legal assistance to renters facing eviction.The program is a signature achievement for Councilmember Nithya Raman, who is challenging Mayor Karen Bass in the Nov.

3 election and has made tenant protections a centerpiece of her campaign.The council approved a $177 million tenant-protection contract with a 12-1 vote on March 10, following a closed-door briefing with Feldstein Soto, as previously reported by The Post.$106.6 million of that was earmarked for LAFLA over three years.“Graffiti contractors are required to provide more documentation ...